Jonny's fitness key to unlocking Wallabies

There is no doubt Wilkinson may well be blaming himself for starting last Saturday's rot, as it was his pass that was intercepted by the Australian winger Joe Roff, which in turn led to an amazing second-half performance by the Wallabies.

But it would be wrong to blame Wilkinson for that error and it would be wrong to place the Lions' loss on his very young shoulders.

He suffered a nasty leg injury in Melbourne and it is a terrific boost for the Lions to have him in Sydney.

The options open to the selectors were Neil Jenkins, Ronan O'Gara and Austin Healey, who has subsequently been given the nod on the wing. Both Jenkins and O'Gara have very different strengths and weaknesses and in choosing the latter among the replacements, the management team will have decided he fits into their offensive and defensive strategy the best.

World-record points scorer Jenkins, despite his goal-kicking prowess, has shown defensive frailties in previous games on tour and does not entirely fit the criteria.

O'Gara has had a very respectable all-round tour, yet he has not taken over the mantle of goal-kicking so far and the management were not sure if he was ready for a game of this magnitude.

Last but not least, Healey has demonstrated that he is probably the most versatile player in the world and has publicly declared to his club coach, Dean Richards of Leicester, that he intends to play fly-half next season.

If the Lions need to make a switch at fly-half during the game, Healey could come in from the wing. He is not a goalkicker, but with Robert Howley injured and Matt Dawson selected at scrum-half - he can kick - Healey could do a job.

It would be ironic if these two Englishmen were to finish the tour as the half-back pairing. They both performed a Houdini act against the ACT Brumbies last week and if they were to repeat that feat again at this level, it would be a miracle.

Dick Best is a former Lions and Grand Slam-winning England coach.